I'm having my dd12 teach level 3 to my dd8. DD12 doesn't mind the scripted aspect, and we're getting science done. DD12 says she's even learning stuff--plus she loves teaching it. Honestly b/c it's completely hands off for me I don't see a downside. Laura

I'm the mother of an 8th grade ds. We started homeschooling in 4th grade after he was miserable from the homework load at his parochial school. I didn't think we'd last 6 weeks, yet here we are 5 years later. My plan was to send him to a rigorous, Catholic, all boys-college prep high school. Now that we're here, I'm not sure I want to send him--especially b/c they warn the students that the workload will involve 2-3 hours of homework a night--this for my homework phobic son. But, he says he wants to go. Dh is afraid he doesn't have the work ethic and will get less than stellar grades. I'm afraid I'll have a miserable teen on my hands who has no time for anything but school and his one sport. Our local high school has partial enrollment (2 classes) so we're looking at that. At this point I want to keep him home until he's a junior and then have him take 2 classes at either the hs or cc. Now that high school is on the immediate horizon, I'm eager to dig in--except for the math and science part. It's been great 'meeting' everyone. Laura

I love Marge Piercy and guilded age, early 20th century novels, so I'll have to check this out. I'm up for the challenge and plan to get my kids involved. However, I had just resolved to actually spend time watching TV. My only down time is spent on these boards, so I'm trying to make time for other outlets. I just watched the entire season 1 of Downton Abbey and am seriously looking forward to the first episode of season 2. If you can recommend any novels similar to DA, I'd be grateful. I read the House at Riverton and will be reading the Forgotten Garden soon. For those of you who liked Unbroken, I also highly recommend Matterhorn. It's possibly the best written novel on the Vietnam War, written by a former Rhodes Scholar who served in the war. Laura

My dd is just like yours. However, I think if I took the time to consistently train her, she could do much better. Laura

Not much help to your original question, but wanted to give you a bump and to let you know that Ohio has a new program called flexi-credits. I'm just starting to investigate it now, but essentially your student (private, public, home schooled) can receive credits for programs outside the school, such as a zoo school program. It helps students delve more deeply into their areas of interest. You might want to ask your local school district for more info. Best of luck, Laura

Not that it's probably worth much, but I LOATHED Billy Budd. Moby Dick was only a bit more tolerable with Cliff Notes. Laura

Another Art Reed fan here. We also use Saxon Teacher, but that is just to show how to do the problems--something a solutions manual can do. And I can vouch that Mr. Reed is very accessible. I met him at a convention and he said to call/email any time. I did, and he promptly followed through. I like him b/c he's so old school. My dd really enjoys him as well. Ds was just ok w/the dvds. He's doing Chalkdust now and prefers that program. Laura

DS did Saxon through Algebra 1/2. He was not a fan, but we plodded through it. He's doing Chalkdust Algebra 1 right now. He's really liking it, but is getting Cs. I'm not sure why. He does do well on the material previously covered by Saxon 1/2, which is quite a bit. I'd prefer to return to Saxon b/c it's easier for me to figure out, but I am really liking the CD dvds, while I prefer Saxon's structure. DD12 is loving Saxon 1/2 and refuses to try anything else. I've heard great things about Lial's and that would have been my second choice after CD. I'd also consider some online programs such as Derek Owen's or Jann in Texas math class next year. Laura

Thanks. Laura

Everything was well-received here, but two toys are giving us trouble. I ordered a remote control helicopter for dd8 (it was on her Santa list, and I try to get one item from that list). Ds13 started playing with it, and it broke w/i 5 mins. It would have happened no matter who played w/it, but since it was brand new and dd's that didn't go over too well. I bought a last minute AG knock off camping set from Target (Our Generation), and there's no way that tent is going together. The AG Dining Set from Amazon was a huge hit. DD12 was a bit quiet while the other two opened their girls--borderline pouty--b/c her siblings had a noticeably bigger pile. Then she opened her iPhone, which made her little sister very jealous--she's dying for her own phone. DS13 was hard to buy for. He couldn't come up w/anything he wanted other than a new pair of tennis shoes, which I told him would be hard to buy w/o him. He will get a new pair--just not under the tree. For my birthday last year dh arranged for a design team to create a homeschool logo for our school. We sent a series of ideas to this group and they came up w/various designs from our suggestions, and then we picked the best one. This year he bought me a mug and a bag and all of us tee shirts w/the our design on them, along w/a big poster to go in our classroom. Laura

Brenda, thanks for the link. Those courses look fabulous. Laura

I think the most important subject to cover for the study of law is writing and grammar. Then logic. We're doing the MP Traditional Logic online class starting in January. The text looks kind of dry, so I'm hoping the online class helps with this. I would start to beef up a lot of analogy work--it's very helpful for the LSAT. Also, Latin is helpful-in part for the language aspect, e.g. you don't have to memorize definitions such as habeas corpus b/c you can translate them, but also because it is a highly logical language. A good government course, especially one that focuses on the Constitution will also be helpful. Best of luck, Laura

I am so sorry you are going through this. I have seen how difficult it can be via my family members who have suffered through the trauma of divorce with small children. If you are 100% sure it's final (and I thoroughly agree with Mommyfaithe that sometimes it might seem like it is, but some marriages do make a comeback eventually and one of the partners usually regrets ending it despite wanting the divorce in the first place), PROTECT YOURSELF. Get a good attorney, freeze your bank accounts, cancel joint credit cards. While things might seem fine and dandy now, one partner often hurts the other partner financially, and sometimes it's a hole that takes years to crawl out of. Love on your kids. The more cordial it is between you and your dh, the better off your kids will be. Try to see your dh as the man you once loved and still loves your children. I've seen some kids make it through a divorce relatively unscathed. Blessings, Laura

Math Mammoth. Laura

:iagree: A good way to spend Christmas break. Laura

OOOh, this looks good. My kids are getting several science type gadgets such as a rock tumbler, geode kit, remote control moon lamp, chemistry kit, Mr. Weatherman weather clock, etc. I'm toying with the idea of getting a digital microscope, but worried about the reviews on Amazon. DD8 will get some American Girl stuff. Maybe a couple of Jim Weiss dvds (I have some they haven't seen yet). And I have to second the audio recording of the Trumpeter and the Swan. I almost cried when I found out EB White recorded it. My kids loved it. Laura

I allow my middle dd to do 3-4 sports/week. She swims as part of a homeschool class (not sure if that counts), does club volleyball 2 nights a week, does 1 night of gymnastics and 2 nights of fencing. My other two need more down time, but are still very active. My oldest fences 3x/week, does MMA 1 night, and does the same swim class. My youngest does gymnastics 1 night and vb 1 night, and the swim class. So, she's only out 2 nights. I'd prefer they play outside more, but the older two have reached that age where the kids don't play much--they've all discovered electronics. So, I'd rather have mine physically active (the ideal is at least 60 mins/day) than wanting to play computer games. They still seem to have plenty of down time. Both dh and I were high school (he was college) athletes, so this is what we know. Laura

Ester Maria, I agree. Ultimately the decision is up to my ds because his success in either situation will depend on how vested he is in whatever educational path he takes. My concern is that he doesn't appreciate how fundamentally different (for both the better and the worse) his life will be next year if he goes to this particular high school. I would not send him full time to our public high school even though it is a good one because the trade off isn't worth it. I am going to try to have him experience slogging through 2-3 hours of homework every night, waking to an alarm at zero dark thirty, to making it through an eight hour day w/o snacking/fidgeting/talking whenever he wants for several weeks before we apply to this school. Unfortunately, they do not have a trial term, although if things go south his first term, he can always return home, which does give me some comfort. I hope you can share your dd's experience as you navigate these waters. Laura

Ester Maria, you articulated my concerns so eloquently! We have access to an amazing private all boys Catholic prep school that includes 4 years of Latin and an amazing science lab, and I am mightily struggling with this decision. Ds does want to go. In theory. I'm not sure he's ready for the rigidity and rigor of this school. Nor do I want to hold him back. DH is concerned that he will get mediocre grades and therefore will hurt his chances at getting into a good college. We've known several homeschool boys who didn't do well. Plus, I'm not sure I want ds in such a pressure cooker. This decision is haunting me. Thanks for posting the original question and all the responses. Laura

I just said something similar to my dh last night. I rarely used streaming when we had the dvd option, but when I did I usually found what I was looking for or something similar. I'm on the verge of cancelling as well. I'm not so happy w/Amazon Prime either. Their selection seems even weaker. Maybe, I'll check out Hulu. We mostly use it for kids' movies or docs. Laura

I voted other b/c I got my first camera ticket this year. Not exactly pulled over. The last time I was pulled over was probably 25 years ago. Laura

What I don't understand is why more homeschoolers aren't using them to validate mommy grades. Is it b/c they are not as favorably looked upon as AP or CC grades even though they are accepted by many colleges? I get the impression they are a lot easier than AP and for someone looking to save $$$ when it comes time to college this might be one way to go. Laura

I think this happens around here. And I might have read it in the book "What High Schools Don't Tell You." Someone (from the book or IRL) was complaining that her dd could never catch up b/c she didn't have the weighted GPA from middle school that some of her peers had. So their middle school As were added into their high schools and somehow giving them 4.0++++ Laura

Something science related. I might do a rock tumbler type search on Amazon and see where that leads me. A remote controlled toy. I just saw one on Discovery Channel shop that was amphibious. I usually then put that item into Amazon and see what others look at or buy for more ideas. I just bought a 13 year old boy who wants to be a writer "Strunk and White's" and "On Writing Well" with a gift receipt. Even if he already had the books, he could return and get something else. It seemed a bit more personal than a B&N gift card. Laura

I'm not sure how she arrived at 3. She only has 2 kids. Hmmm. I do remember that braid down the back (along w/lots of other fun 80s hairdos). Laura